From Labour Law to Social Competition Law?

It may seem dangerous to express oneself on the future of labour law, since it is widely considered to be in crisis by scholars of the field. There is no doubt that anyone attempting to predict the probable developments by presenting hypotheses regarding these developments runs the risk of making errors. Especially the impossibility to guarantee the relevancy of the chosen parameters and a correct evaluation of the nature of their relations could lead to erroneous predictions. The same applies when one has the ambition to pronounce oneself on the future of institutions, structures or procedures laid down in and protected by law.

The objective of this book is threefold. First of all, it draws attention to a number of phenomena and processes both within and outside the law that affect the protective mechanisms and essential functions of labour law. Secondly, the authors want to point out their main causes and principal consequences. Finally, the book reflects the remedies proposed by the authors to preserve the essential task of labour law. Those objectives are achieved by developing the following four themes: the existential relation between labour law, the labour market and social competition; the historical tie between labour law and human dignity; the relationship between labour law, market law and (social) competition law; and finally the risk of a renewed contestation of the dignity of working people.

The aim of this book is to provide intellectually challenging ideas for those interested in understanding, explaining and interpreting labour laws - whether they are scholars, practitioners, judges, policy-makers, or workers and employers.